Thursday, January 25, 2018

Today in Soap Opera History (January 25)

The Guiding Light premiered on NBC radio on January 25, 1937.
The show ended its run on CBS TV on September 18, 2009.

"Whoever wishes to foresee the future must consult the past; for human events ever resemble those of preceding times. This arises from the fact that they are produced by men who ever have been, and ever shall be, animated by the same passions, and thus they necessarily have the same results."
― Machiavelli

"Today in Soap Opera History" is a collection of the most memorable, interesting and influential events in the history of scripted, serialized programs. From birthdays and anniversaries to scandals and controversies, every day this column celebrates the soap opera in American culture.

On this date in...

1937: Irna Phillips' The Guiding Light premiered on NBC Radio. The show ran on radio (NBC then CBS) until 1956. In 1952, the series transitioned to CBS-TV, airing both on TV and radio until 1956. The show ran on TV until September 18, 2009, making it the longest running scripted series in broadcast history (18,262 episodes on TV and radio).

1953: On The Guiding Light, Bert Bauer (Charita Bauer) complained to Papa Bauer (Theo Goetz) about there being yet another scandal in the life of her sister-in-law, Meta.

1974: On Days of our Lives, Maggie Simmons (Suzanne Rogers) married Marty Hansen (John Clarke), who was actually Mickey Horton with amnesia.

You can catch a glimpse of the wedding in the montage below.

1980: On As the World Turns, Barbara (Colleen Zenk) confessed to Tom (Tom Tammi) that she had a baby boy three years earlier.

1983: On The Edge of Night, Raven (Sharon Gabet) fretted that she might have to actually go through with her wedding to Ian Devereaux.

1988: On General Hospital, a hospitalized Robin (Kimberly McCullough) had a panic attack when she saw a man that looked like Grant Putnam.

1990: Actress Ava Gardner, who played Ruth Galveston in Knots Landing, died at age 67.

Generations ended in 1991 with a cliffhanger.

1991: NBC aired the final episode daytime soap opera Generations. Sally Sussman created the series, serving as both its executive producer and head writer.

Describing the serial in 1989, as it was about to go on, NBC said that it was "a contemporary daytime drama set in Chicago" and that it centered "on the relationships of two families -- one white, the Whitmores; one black, the Marshalls -- whose lives have been linked for generations."

1991: Kassie Wesley (now Kassie DePaiva) aired for the final time as Chelsea Reardon on Guiding Light.